Week 4
Current Information and Communication Technologies
Technologies have helped health care providers to be able to manage patients care and have revolutionized healthcare and the delivery of care in health care organizations (Laureate Education, 2012c). Electronic Medical Records (EMR) communication technologies have helped health care providers and members of healthcare team to provide care to patient, access patient medical records from different locations, communicate easily with the patient’s care team, and be on the same page regarding patient care (Laureate Education, 2012c). Information and communication technologies (ICTs) used in the healthcare have significant advantages, e.g. EMR. They have helped promote patient-centered healthcare, improve quality of care, and educate health professionals and patients (Rouleau, Gagnon, & Cote, 2015).
Technology is fundamental in providing safe, continuous, effective, quality care for patients in the health care setting. In my place of work there is an electronic health record that we use called the EPIC Electronic Medical Record (eMAR) System. This system has effectively helped health care providers in my healthcare organization deliver safe and high-quality care, provided predictive analytics and embedded decision support tools to support clinical practice in order to yield better outcomes (EPIC, 2016). The eMAR have made it possible for patients to have personal and family health information at their fingertips with MyChart. They can message their doctors, attend e-visits, complete questionnaires, schedule appointments, and be more involved in managing their health. This technology has resulted in greater patient satisfaction in my place of work (EPIC, 2016). In the psychiatric unit where I work, the EPIC system has made it possible for healthcare providers to monitor a patient’s progress, PHQ-9 (depression score), fall risks, risks of suicide, and Sepsis scores which have helped nurses and physicians make adjustments to treatment plans and take precautions to provide quality and precise patient care. This system has helped reduce medication errors, monitor allergies, identify increasing behavioral issues, and ultimately prevented multiple complication and even death that could be caused if sepsis scores were ignored or if a fall risk patient wasn’t identified on time for precautions to be taken.
The Effects Increased Use of Technology would have on the Nursing Practice
Patient care technology has become progressively complicated, changing the way nursing care is conceptualized and carried out. Before the widespread use of technology, nurses trusted heavily on their senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing to assess patients, monitor patient status, and detect changes. As time progressed, nurses’ independent senses were replaced with technology intended to detect physical changes in patient conditions (Powell-Cope, Nelson, Patterson, 2006). Technology has been described as both part of the problem and part of the solution for safer health care, and some spectators warned of the introduction of errors that could arise after the adoption of the new technology system. Example, nurses can be so absorbed on data from monitors that they fail to discover vital delicate changes in patients’ clinical status (Powell-Cope, Nelson, Patterson, 2006). While technology has the prospective to improve care, it has its risks (Powell-Cope, Nelson, Patterson, 2006).
Barriers Hindering Adoption of Technology Tool
Technologies like EPIC or eMAR that are used by nurses offer the means for stopping inaccuracies, errors, and adverse events (e.g., medication errors, miscommunications, delays in treatment, and adverse events). Still these same technologies also present unpremeditated problems and openings for failures (Powell-Cope, Nelson, Patterson, 2006). Barriers that could possibly hinder the adoption of these technology systems are as follows: Studies show that nurses expressed their frustration concerning EHR systems stating that they did not support their everyday clinical practice because they “lacked patient overview, they did not support individualized care, they were not user friendly, they were not always bedside accessible, and the computer systems were considered unreliable (Rouleau, Gagnon, & Cote, 2015). In my place of work, I have experienced the frustration of trying to scan medications and sometimes these medications are not able to scan due to technical difficulties, and sometimes the physical environment is also a barrier for nurses using this equipment. For example, the older part of our hospital buildings that were never intended to accommodate newer technologies, is often a compelling factor in the use of technology equipment used by nurses. These computer technologies will not work in those areas at all most of the time. Therefore, in order to prevent wasting time due to the high acuity and fast-paced healthcare units, some nurses respond to these computer issues by using other unsafe options or temporary fixes to technology problems or malfunctions, e.g. scanning a medication with a patient’s extra armband in the medication room instead of taking the mobile HER to the patient’s bedside knowing that it will not scan, thus increasing chances for error over time. Another significant barrier that could slow or hinder the adoption of the widespread use of communication technology is if the nurses lack the knowledge of how to use the technology system and also “cost” is a barrier as well.
How can Adoption to the Technology Tool be Facilitated?
There are a few effective ways that my place of work has used to facilitate the adoption and widespread use of the communication technology and they include: (a) Providing training for nurses and health care providers to get acquainted to the technology system and know how to use them effectively that would benefit the patients and also decrease medication errors, and so on. (b) Annual refresher courses: These are very helpful, especially when there are system updates. Provides in-service training and classes to refresh nurses and test their technology skill. Anyone who does not succeed is given the opportunity to take extra classes and retained. (c) Finally, Support and empowerment is vital. Nurses need to help each other, assist each other and empower each other. To be a great team member it is important that nurses who are more proficient in the usage of HER to help out those who are struggling.
Reference
Coiera, E. (2006). Communication systems in healthcare. Clinical Biochemist Reviews, 27(2),89–98. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1579411/pdf/cbr27_2p089.pdf
EPIC Systems. (2016). Patient Engagement and Management. Retrieved from https://www.epic.com/software#PatientEngagement
Laureate Education (Producer). (2012c). Health care technologies. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Powell-Cope, G., Nelson, A. L., & Patterson, E. S. (2006). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2686/pdf/Bookshelf_NBK2686.pdf
Rouleau, G., Gagnon, M., & Cote, J. (2015). Impacts of information in communication technologies on nursing care. Systematic Reviews, 4(1),75. doi:10.1186/s13643-015-0062-y
